Journey and the Storyteller: The First Tale

 Journey and the Storyteller

 The First Tale

Journey and the Storyteller lived far away from anyone and everyone. The Storyteller was Journey’s teacher, mentor, friend. Everything Journey was could be attributed to the Storyteller.

Once upon a time, the Storyteller found Journey and asked if he wanted to go fishing. Journey was always eager to learn new things and had never fished before. He eagerly tagged along. 

The Storyteller always had a lesson to go along with every event, so Journey asked, “What will we learn today?”

“Well,” said the Storyteller, “fishing for rabbits is very different from fishing for fish.”

“Rabbits?” Journey asked with a gulp.

“Certainly. It’s rabbit season, my boy.”

“I don’t know about fishing for rabbits,” Journey said.

“Fishing for fish is too mundane. Everyone fishes for fish. Very expected. Very droll. If I’ve taught you anything in all our time together, you should always endeavor to achieve the extraordinary. The idea of fishing for fish...” The Storyteller yawned for effect.

They arrived at a small pond surrounded by a lush green lawn. A grassy knoll overlooked the water. Journey and the Storyteller surveyed the little lake. Journey could see wet cottontails pop out of the surface here and there, a pair of soggy ears break the surface now and again, and even one or two small bunnies leap from the surface of the pond before diving back down. Journey pictured the cute little fluffy animals all over beneath the placid surface.

“This will be extraordinary,” the Storyteller exclaimed.

The Storyteller baited a big hook with a juicy carrot more orange than the ripest pumpkin. He cast the line out far into the middle of the pond. He handed Journey another vegetable and the boy did the same. Journey cast his line as well. Then they waited for a bite.

Journey imagined the hook catching between cute bunny buckteeth. Or the sharp edge poking on the puff of a cottontail. Or snagging one pink little nose. Or piercing a long rabbit ear. Journey shuddered.

Then the line grew taut. Something snatched the end of Journey’s line. He held tight, although he really wanted to let go. What horrors awaited him at the other end? He reeled his catch in. The submerged prey struggled beneath the surface. Journey imagined a cute fluffy critter with a hook lodged in its throat.

With a mighty yank, Journey pulled the catch from the pond. Dangling at the end of the line was a fish, flapping, scaly and slippery and perfectly plain. Just a fish. Only a fish.

The Storyteller grinned proudly. There had been a lesson in their activity after all. The Storyteller gave him the insight as they walked home with supper in their pail:

“Always expect the extraordinary—that way you’ll be pleasantly surprised by the mundane.”